Tag Archives: toddler friends

Spencer and I went out to breakfast this morning with some of my mom friends (yay! Mommy time!). One of them, C., brought her 3-year-old daughter M. and a little girl she watches, 2-year-old Ch. The two girls, who spend one morning a week with one another are clearly toddler friends and sat next to one another during the meal. Spencer sat next to me in the corner so I could minimize any damage, noise, floods, tornadoes, etc. that a toddler could cause in a small restaurant.

When we were finished eating, we gathered up front to say our goodbyes, the two toddler friends holding one another’s hands. Spencer, keen on anybody his size, toddled over to the girls. “Hi kids!,” he said, smiling. Wanting to part of the toddler friends action, he stood next M. and tried to take hold of her free hand. M., just a toddler herself and in a “boys are yucky” stage, was having none of it. She didn’t tell him no, but she wouldn’t offer her hand up to him and she kept turning her whole self away from him. (She was probably unimpressed by his syrup-stained M&M shirt [orange today] and his sticky fingers.)

Apparently Spencer is not a good reader of body language, because he kept trying. Unfortunately, M. kept rebuffing him. My friend C. was embarrassed. “M.!” she said, “Hold Spencer’s hand!” When M. still refused, C. moved on to Ch., but she wasn’t interested either.

I felt so bad for Spencer. He didn’t understand what was going on. He wasn’t upset or crying or anything, but the look of bewilderment on his face just made my heart break. He just wanted to be part of the crowd. When you are two years old, everyone is supposed to be your friend. Everyone likes you. How do I explain to him that sometimes it doesn’t quite work that way? (And that sometimes, girls can be very silly?)

We left not too long after, me happily taking my little guy’s hand as we headed back to the car. He looked up at me brightly. “Hi Mommy!” he said, smiling once more. “We walk together?”

Awww. Who wouldn’t want to be toddler friends with someone as sweet as that?

Want to learn more about Spencer? Check out Shock and Aww on Facebook and my other parenting blog, We Are Both Right. Also, I’m on Twitter too. (Because I have all this time on my hands.